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Will Tobacco Control Bill Be Passed? [analysis]
[July 24, 2014]

Will Tobacco Control Bill Be Passed? [analysis]


(AllAfrica Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) The varying arguments at the recent one-day public hearing on the tobacco control bill may have introduced a new twist to the debate on the bill's passage.

Are the proponents of tobacco control just? Is the manufacturing or sales of the product illegal? What will be the outcome of the tobacco control bill awaiting passage at the National Assembly? These and many other questions came up last week in Abuja a one-day public hearing on the tobacco control bill.



Visitors to the assembly building needed nobody to tell them that a sitting would take place as concerned parties had displayed placards to express their opinions at the major entrance to the assembly. In equal strengths, the pro and anti-tobacco campaigners used powerfully worded placards and banners to state their opinions.

The atmosphere at the gate thus prepared guests for what to expect within the complex. As early as 8.30 am, various interest groups have started taking seats at one of the conference rooms where the public hearing took place.


The hearing, which was organised by the Committee on Health, House of Representatives, in collaboration with the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), gave stakeholders opportunity to have an input in the bill before it is harmonised for approval by the executive.

Concerned parties Because of the sensitivity of the issue, various groups with different interests were represented. Before the hearing, over a hundred submissions were said to have been received from both anti-tobacco groups and pro-tobacco groups. This groups include; manufacturers, tobacco farmers, distributors, pharmaceutical association of Nigeria, anti-tobacco groups, among others.

For the British American Tobacco Nigeria (BATN), a major stakeholder in the industry, the passage or no passage of the bill is not a matter to contest. While reiterating its support for the passage of the bill, it pushed for balanced regulation for the sector.

The Director of Corporate and Regulatory Affairs, BAT West Africa, Mr. Freddy Messanvi said that BATN has always backed the passage of a balanced and evidence based regulation of the tobacco industry in Nigeria.

According to him, "Through co-operation between BATN and regulatory agencies, we have achieved reduction in the incidence of illicit trade from over 80 per cent to around 20 per cent today".

He added that any proposed regulation must not force the legal and regulated businesses out of operation and leave the market at the mercy of smugglers and illicit traders.

He added further that in passing this bill, it is important that trends in other countries where similar legislation has been considered and its implications should be taken into consideration.

He further stressed BATN's support for various provisions in the Bill such as sales of cigarettes to people under the age of 18, but also highlighted areas of concern such as the outright ban of retail sales of tobacco products which will drive the sales underground into the hands of smugglers. BATN urged that it is in the interest of all stakeholders to ensure the passage of a balanced, workable and evidence-based bill.

Other positions Other stakeholders, such Initiative for Public Policy Analysis and the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) in their submissions cautioned that the legally backed sector should not be stifled out of operation thereby leaving the citizenry at the mercy of smugglers. According to them this will defeat the purpose that the law is supposed to achieve.

However, if there is any presentation that attracted many observers at the hearing, it was a submission by the Manufacturing Association of Nigeria (MAN) that the clause on tobacco advertising should be ratify in other to comply with the treaties of World Trade Organisation which Nigeria is a signatory to.

Since the war against tobacco started in Nigeria, which led to prohibition on tobacco advertising by the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON), the industry which used to be the highest advertising spender has been overtaken by the telecom and the brewery sector. However, MAN is asking the house committees to critical revisit some clauses in the bill in other to ensure that tobacco advertising is regulated than the outright ban which has prevented trade communication between manufacturers, distributors and adult consumers.

MAN Position In its submission signed by the Director-General of MAN, the association tasked the committees to ratify section 15 sub-sections one of the bills which warned that "no person shall promote tobacco or tobacco products in any form except in manners proscribe by the bill." MAN suggested that as a legally traded product, the omnibus and absolute ban is not realistic.

"As a legally traded product, and if the intention is not a total ban of the product; then this omnibus and absolute ban is not realistic. MAN is of the view that the industry should be allowed what is called trade communication; this is usually business-to-business communication.

"This would allow the manufacturer to be able to communicate with the distributor, wholesaler, and retailer and even with the informed adult consumers," MAN stated.

In addition, MAN also frowns at the section 24 sub-section one of the bill which deals with proposed ban on sales promotion of tobacco. The section of the bill stated that no tobacco manufacturer, distributor or retailer shall offer or provide any consideration, whether directly or indirectly, for the purchase of a tobacco product, including a gift to a purchaser or a third party, bonus, premium, cash rebate or right to participate in a game, lottery or contest.

The section also ban manufacturer from furnishing a tobacco product without monetary consideration or in consideration of the purchase or service or the performance of a service. In the light of this, MAN said: "Our view here is aligns with the argument in respect of allowing business-to-business communication.

"While the provision can apply to consumers to discourage initiation and encourage rescission, it should not apply to the relationship between the manufacturer and his wholesaler or distributor." As a result, Ogunmefun described the bill as it is presently drafted as anti-industry which is capable of further accelerates the regeneration of the industrialisation of Nigeria. "We collectively make the above request to save the affected manufacturers in the overall interest of the economy and in tandem with the laudable Transformation Agenda of the Federal Government," he said.

Advertising prohibition In what looked like a new trend to the debate, Habanera Limited, an affiliate of Japan Tobacco International (JTI), said it was not happy that tobacco advertising was already ban in Nigeria by APCON through its code of advertising, sales promotion, even while the bill is still being debated and yet to be signed into law.

The General Manager, Mr. Grant Mowat, said while this ban is rigorously enforced, no justification has been presented for why the bill is needed in the light of existing restrictions.

"This ban is rigorously enforced, sufficient and complies with Nigeria's entire obligation in terms of Framework Convention of Tobacco Control (FCTC). Despite this, the Bill proposes new measures. No justification has been presented for why they are needed, in light of the existing restrictions, nor has there been any assessment of whether they will be effective or what the negative consequences might be," he said.

While the WTO has described some of the challenges to trade promotion of tobacco products and investment as trade to barriers as experienced in some other countries of the world, the National Tobacco Retailers Association in a jointly signed proposition to the assembly described the tobacco advertising prohibition as a laudable regulation but tasked the government to do it in such a way that both investors and non-smokers are protected.

But a major stakeholder in the struggle, the Environmental Right Activist /Friend of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) believe that in spite of the reasons proposed by tobacco groups; tobacco remains a killer and should not be advertised in any form.

The group said: "We support a complete ban of smoking in all indoor and designated outdoor public places. We reject the inclusion of designated smoking areas in the bill since such measure negates the spirit and intent of the bill which is the reduction of smoking.

And to ensure that millions of people are not allowed to be exposed to the marketing gimmicks employed by tobacco firms, ERA suggests that tobacco advertising should be ban totally.

Another anti-tobacco advocate, Hajia Mariam Uwaise, suggested that such indirect marketing and advertising methods employed by tobacco firms should be prohibited.

Also, Nigeria Tobacco Control Alliance wants the right to use trademark by tobacco industry to be removed but the President of Intellectual Property Law Association of Nigeria, Professor Bankole Sodipo said there is need to ensure unlimited opportunities for brand owners to communicate their corporate brands as distinct from product brands. He, however, urged the national assembly to amend the bill in order to align with the Nigerian constitution and international treaties.

Cross roads Though the debate over the health hazard of tobacco has been on for a long period, it has always hit a wall because of other considerations. While many were clamouring for total ban and possibly strict control, there are others who are calling on government to tread with caution as a result of the economic importance of tobacco and its great contribution to community development. As things are, stakeholders seem to be at crossroads on the bill.

Copyright This Day. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).

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